


A Fortune That Heaven Has Given to Me

by mcgarrygirl78



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Drama, F/M, Friendship, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-09
Updated: 2014-10-09
Packaged: 2018-02-20 11:21:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2426858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“What is it about you that I just get?”</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Fortune That Heaven Has Given to Me

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the prompts **friendship** , **rain** , and **a soft place to fall**.

Emily stood out on the front porch with her beer. It was an uncomfortable situation and she just couldn’t take it anymore. They were all there today, giving Hotch a housewarming party though he had been in the place for almost seven months. Work was always busy and this was the first time they had an opportunity to get together as friends for an afternoon. He had a little deck in the back so he and Dave grilled steaks and kabobs while the team drank beer and had great conversation. 

 

Jack was there, he loved entertaining his father’s friends and they all enjoyed his company. Haley arrived two hours into the festivities. Jack was not spending the night as he did most weekends. She and Hotch had an agreement; he was keeping his son for the three day holiday weekend next week. Tonight he was going home with his mom. 

 

As soon as she arrived, the whole atmosphere changed. The laughter and banter stopped; the place was as silent as a cemetery. She barely spoke to anyone though everyone made an effort to be friendly. The only one who managed to get a word out of her was JJ. She wanted to touch her stomach and ask her how things were going with her pregnancy. Emily went out the door then. She saw a chance to escape and she took it. She was mad at herself for lighting a cigarette when she got out there. She was mad at Dave for bringing them and tempting her in the first place.

 

Why did Haley get under her skin? She most likely did it on purpose but Emily’s inability not to let the silly shit get to her was upsetting. Leaning on the banister, she took a breath through her nose and let it out of her mouth. The sound of the steady rain soothed her. Soon Haley would be gone, though unfortunately she had to take Jack with her, and things would go back to normal. She stood a little straighter, throwing out the second half of the cigarette when she heard the screen door open.

 

“Bye bye Emily!” Jack bellowed, holding onto his mother’s hand.

 

“Bye JackJack. Have a great afternoon. Goodbye Haley.”

 

The former Mrs. Aaron Hotchner just looked at her. Just looked, did not utter a single word. She pulled Jack a little faster before she finally picked him up and dodged through the rain to her Beamer. Emily wondered if Hotch’s child support checks were paying her car note or was it a gift from the boyfriend. Again, she scolded herself for having those kinds of thoughts. And for throwing out that cigarette.

 

***

 

“What are you doing out here?”

 

Hotch came out on the porch a few hours later and found her. It was still raining but the party was over. Everyone had gone home after thanking Hotch for a great afternoon. Emily stayed behind, said she would help him clean. Nothing had been cleaned up as of yet.

 

“Hmm?” Emily looked at him, tried to put on a smile but fell short.

 

“What's the matter?”

 

“Nothing.”

 

“Right.” He smirked.

 

“Nothing.”

 

“You are so far gone…you’ve been far gone.”

 

“What are you talking about?”

 

“You tell me.”

 

“Hotch…”

 

“Tell me I'm wrong. No, don’t tell me I'm wrong because you would just say it because you love telling me I'm wrong. What's up?”

 

“I'm fine.”

 

“If you don’t talk to me, I’ll make you talk to me.”

 

“Ooh, I'm scared.”

 

“C'mon Em, for real.”

 

“Its not right.” she said.

 

“What's not right?”

 

“The way she comes into your house and doesn’t even address your friends. The way she looks at each and every one of us as if we have personally affronted her. I fucking hate your ex-wife OK. Dammit!”

 

“What?” Hotch leaned against the house, crossing his arms. He looked so comfortable in his Nike track pants and FBI tee shirt.

 

“I am not supposed to be talking shit about Haley. It’s not healthy.”

 

“OK, I was with you right up until not healthy.”

 

“Nevermind. C'mon, I said I was going to help you clean.” Emily brushed past him heading for the door. “We better get to it…I know you don’t like mess.”

 

“I did most of it while you were out here.” He followed her into the house.

 

“Why did you do that? I said I was going to help.”

 

“Well you can load the dishwasher, I hadn't done that yet. Maybe you can also tell me what's so unhealthy about getting things off your chest.”

 

“It’s not my place Hotch.” Emily started to grab the rinsed dishes out of the sink.

 

“We’re friends; you know you can say whatever you want to me, Emily. I learned that one the hard way. Your honesty is always refreshing. It keeps me honest.”

 

“You are never in any danger of not being honest, Hotch.”

 

“That’s not true.” He mumbled.

 

“What?”

 

“Nothing. Look, Haley isn’t very nice to you. I don’t know why, but…”

 

“You don’t know why?” Emily stopped what she was doing, put her hands on her hips and looked at him. Then she saw the look on his face and her stance softened. Oh my God, how many times had his ex-wife given him that same stance? Dear God if she ever became her Emily would wander into traffic. “We are going to stop talking about her, right now. Did you have fun today?”

 

“I did.” He smiled. “I guess I can admit it was a good idea. I don’t know why I didn’t think it would be.”

 

“Because you're a neat freak and don’t like people trampling through your house. Only one major spill today and we got it up rather quickly. So I was right, and I think you owe me one.”

 

“I owe you one?” Hotch raised an eyebrow.

 

“Yeah.”

 

“I owe you one?” he said it a bit slower. “I think you owe me one…you owe me more than one.”

 

Emily laughed, closing the dishwasher and turning it on.

 

“Explain please.”

 

“You owe me two wine glasses, a bottle of Jack Daniels, and probably 5 tee shirts.”

 

“I do not owe you five tee shirts. Maybe two.” Emily held up two fingers. “And you want to talk about owing? You owe me at least 3 bottles of booze, a blanket, and a DVD.”

 

“I didn’t scratch that DVD, your machine did that. A machine that you replaced recently because it was a piece of crap by the way.”

 

“Don’t blame Arnoldo for what you did, that’s not fair.”

 

“Why do you give inanimate objects names?” Hotch asked laughing.

 

Emily started to laugh too. She threw her head back and just laughed. It felt good to get some of the poison Haley left in the air hours ago from her system.

 

“I'm sorry.” She said.

 

“For what?”

 

“We don’t ever need to talk about her. We can talk about anything you want and if it’s her that’s fine, but other than that we never need to talk about her.”

 

“I hope you know that made very little sense, Emily Prentiss. But you want to know the craziest part?”

 

“Sure.”

 

“I understood it perfectly. What it is about you that I just get?”

 

“I don't know.” She started putting things in the refrigerator, busying herself. 

 

“You get me too.” Hotch said.

 

“I try to…that’s what friends are for.” She smiled.

 

They were friends. They had been friends since he showed up at her house the night Haley left. He said he didn’t have anywhere else to go…didn’t want looks or questions. Things were falling apart in the BAU, Jason was missing and Emily had quit. She was back after that night and it was a good thing because Hotch really needed her. She didn’t like to think she brought him back from the brink or anything, she didn’t have that kind of power, but she had been a friend. Someone to watch movies with or share coffee or just call when the insomnia ravaged his brain.

 

She deflected questions, mostly from Garcia, of a possible romance there. Derek started calling them Starsky and Hotch because they spent so much time together. Unfortunately, that one picked up steam amongst their teammates. Emily told them it was ridiculous to assume a man and woman could not just be good friends. Hotch was her boss and anything beyond friendship was very inappropriate. Not only that, it had been such a long time since Emily had a deep friendship. She didn’t trust easily and certainly didn’t share. With Hotch she could do both of those things. 

 

He laughed with her, was serious when she needed him to be. They both loved classic films and liked to have little mini-marathons to come down from the stress of the job. Hotch got her to watch college football and she got him back on his bike. They were comfortable with one another and Emily never felt she had to be anything but herself in his presence. It made working together better too. The closeness of the team and their cohesion as a unit survived the loss of Jason Gideon; it could survive anything. David Rossi brought in another dynamic and fit into the round holes of the FBI just like a perfect square peg.

 

“Yeah. We’re good friends.”

 

“Is that a question?”

 

“No.” Hotch shook his head. “Sometimes I think you know everything I'm thinking.”

 

“Not everything, but I'm getting better at reading the signals. Why do you think everyone left when they did? I knew you had a good time but felt a little overwhelmed. The pressures of being the host and all.”

 

“Well my hostess left me hanging.”

 

“I let her get to me and I shouldn’t have.”

 

“She has no legitimate reason to hate you and that’s why I don’t let it get to me. OK, that’s not true. I work on not letting it get to me. I can't let Haley ruin what we have…she’s gotten on with her life.”

 

“She won't ever do that Hotch.”

 

“Promise me?”

 

“Of course I do. Hey,” she moved closer and threw her arms around him in a hug. “Cross my heart.”

 

Hotch held on tight. She smelled amazing, like the powdery scent she always wore and the freshness of the rain. He fell asleep at night thinking about the smell of her skin. So often, they partnered up out in the field and then hung out on the off hours; the smell of Emily Prentiss was as familiar to him as his own this past year.

 

“I can't let you go.” He hardly whispered it. Actually, Hotch could not believe it came out of his mouth.

 

“It’s OK, I don't have anywhere to be right now.” she laughed a bit.

 

“I mean it Emily, I can't let you go.”

 

She didn’t say anything for a while but she didn’t seem to be letting go either. Hotch reached up to stroke her hair and Emily sighed against him. There was a jolt through her body, and then she relaxed even more. Their first kiss was effortless; there was no awkward nose bumping or that moment where neither was sure where to put their hands. He was a damn good kisser, Emily could admit to thinking about it on more than one occasion. More than ten recently as she watched, almost from afar, the dynamic of their relationship change. 

 

It frightened her at first but she knew that for both of them the friendship, the solid base they built with each other, would always come first. It was best to go with the flow. There was no need to push; sometimes when a man and women were close, lines blurred. Sometimes she was sure that she was just thinking too much or misconstruing when she thought about conversations they had or ways they looked at each other. As he kissed her now, Emily knew she had been on target.

 

“Tell me to stop.” Hotch said when breathing became more important than possessing her mouth.

 

“Why would I do that?” she asked, stroking the nape of his neck.

 

“Because I have the overwhelming desire to lift you over my shoulder like a caveman, drag you into my bedroom, and make passionate love to you. I can't help myself…I can't pretend anymore that I don’t want you.”

 

Emily kissed him hard; they were the most beautiful words she had ever heard. She led him by the hand to his bedroom. She had actually slept there once. A few months ago, a migraine knocked her out. She acted as if she wanted to try to get home but Hotch would not hear of it. He put her straight to bed and joined her a few hours later. Nothing happened in that bed though Emily did wake in his arms the next morning. The feeling of euphoria was something that she had been unable to shake since then.

 

What she felt right now...there were no words for it. She fell back on the mattress and felt him over her, his hands on her body and her hands on his. The clothes disappeared quickly and skin brushed against skin. The way his lips lingered and his eyes widened with fascination…the moans that came from his throat when she touched him. 

 

“My God,” Hotch paused.

 

“What?” Emily grinned. The way he touched her face sent shivers up her spine.

 

“I love you. I love you so much and I'm an idiot for not saying so sooner.”

 

“Can I bring up at a later date that you can be an idiot sometimes?”

 

“No.” Hotch laughed.

 

Emily pulled him close again, kissing his laughter. She wanted him too; she wanted him so badly she couldn’t stop trembling. When he was finally inside of her and the tears came, Hotch gently wiped them away. They were both a little excited and that first time was satisfying but quickly over. That was fine because the second time…it was heaven. They connected on a deeper level and it allowed their bodies to go to places together that neither had seen in too long to recall.

 

“Oh Aaron, oh God, oh dear God.” Emily moaned, holding him tight against her as he made love to her and his fingers stroked her clit. “Don’t stop, don't stop, Oh my God.”

 

“You feel so good, damn baby, oh God.”

 

Emily heard Puccini in her head, _La Boheme_ , and she knew. She knew it was the most beautiful thing she had ever experienced because there was only one other person who gave her music and it still was not Puccini. Puccini was the ultimate. She grabbed hold, crying out his name as she climaxed for the third time. Hotch wasn’t far behind and went she felt him fill her with every ounce of his intensity she knew it was a bond that would be impossible to break.

 

“If it would have been _Nessun Dorma_ I would be dragging you to the justice of the peace.” She whispered.

 

“I'm sorry?” Hotch opened his eyes. He turned on his side and pulled her close to him.

 

Emily delighted in his kisses and feeling his hands on her warm, perspiring skin. He immediately found her nipple ring; she tingled as he toyed with it.

 

“You make me hear Puccini.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Mmm hmm.”

 

“Well you make me see stars.”

 

“I love you, Aaron Hotchner. I didn’t want…I thought saying so might ruin the amazing thing we have. I don’t ever want to lose it.”

 

“Never.” He shook his head.

 

“I want nothing more than to be in your arms, but I want to be your best friend too.”

 

“You are my best friend.” Hotch kissed her nose. “Starsky and Hotch, remember?”

 

“Oh God,” she laughed. “I hate that.”

 

“I think it’s cute.”

 

“At least we don’t have to worry anymore about everyone thinking we’re together and it not being true.”

 

Hotch exhaled and just held her close. Her body felt so good on his; it felt perfect. That night she fell asleep in his bed he lay awake for a long time. All he wanted was to hold her, to make her feel better with the love he felt for her. Instead, he stayed on his side of the bed, almost the edge of the bed, not to violate a relationship that was one thing no matter how much he wanted it to be another. When she woke in his arms anyway, that’s when Hotch knew. He didn’t know what he was going to do about it, but he knew.

 

“I think it’s been true longer than either one of us realize.” Hotch replied.

 

“It’s true now, and that’s what matters. I think I need to ask you to pinch me.”

 

“I think I need to ask how the hell it is that you have two body piercings. That just kicked my fantasies up five notches.”

 

“Just five?” Emily looked at him with a raised eyebrow and a cheeky grin.

 

“Well I have the real thing now…it might be ten if I didn’t.”

 

“You wouldn’t know about those piercings if you didn’t, Mister.”

 

Hotch kissed her and Emily smiled. He never wanted to move from this bed, from this moment; wanted to relive it again and again until it was seared into his memory for the rest of his life.

 

“I'm craving ice cream.” She said. “What time is it? Let’s go to the diner.”

 

“Now?”

 

“Yes.” Emily started to get up but he pulled her back. “I want ice cream and pie. I want to sing along to all the 80s music they play. I just…”

 

“What?”

 

“I just want to spend the evening with you like I always do.”

 

“Me too.” Hotch replied.

 

“Then get up, SSA Hotchner, let’s go. This bed will be here when we get back, and you will not be getting into it alone.”

 

That made Hotch grin. He got up and dressed, ready to go on with his evening and their lives.

 

***

                                                                                                                       


End file.
